TiVo Ads It Up Some More

TiVo (NASDAQ:TIVO) announced another deal this week that may herald the company's fast-forward to a profitable future.

TiVo said that it has forged an agreement with advertising company Omnicom (NYSE:OMC), through which it will hand over data on the effectiveness of TV ads, compiled through its new research unit. It already had clients in Nissan and OMD NEXT.

TiVo was once notorious as the brand that defined DVRs, only to have paying customers swiped by generic versions from cable companies like Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA). So TiVo's attempts to take its box to the next level -- where it can gain additional revenues by selling its intelligence to advertisers -- are important to its long-term outlook.

You can't deny that coming up with a way to disrupt advertising -- and then offering a solution -- is pretty smart maneuvering on TiVo's part. Meanwhile, it's been increasingly making deals with providers like Cox, potentially extending its penetration into American households.

Although TiVo shares dipped today, they increased by 17% in August, with investors feeling pretty optimistic about the results of its legal wranglings with EchoStar (NASDAQ:DISH). However, TiVo reports its quarterly numbers later today, and it's still expected to post a loss (which is no new development for TiVo, of course, since the company has never been profitable).

TiVo seems to be making all the right moves, using initiatives that should increase its relevance in the marketplace, but it's still unclear how much these deals will help its financial picture. No one could blame investors for putting TiVo on pause as they await the latest batch of quarterly data.

For more on TiVo, put the following Foolish articles on your to-do list:

• TiVo's increasing its popularity by teaming up with Cox.
• Tim Beyers recently said, you go, TiVo.
• TiVo arms itself with its new ad research unit.

TiVo is a Motley Fool Stock Advisor recommendation. To find out what other companies David and Tom Gardner have recommended to investors, click here for a 30-day free trial.

Alyce Lomax does not own shares of any of the companies mentioned.